The Runic Alchemist

Neo started running from his house, making his feline ancestors proud with his speed, while his mother shouted in the background for him to at least eat something. But who cared about eating? He couldn't miss the fight and prayed it hadn't started yet. On his way, Zinshi joined him, effortlessly matching his speed.

Soon, a hyena's laughter echoed behind them—Taub, who always planned ahead and was prepared, should already be there.

They were all twelve years old and had recently passed the ascension trial, marking their path toward becoming worthy pugilists. Master Keizie had taught them the way of the fist, and although they had known each other for a while, their friendship had solidified through training. Neo was different from the others, though.

He had been trained to be a pugilist since childhood by his uncle, but during his first trial, he had also acquired an Esper class. Master Keizie had dismissed it as a useless ability since no one could figure out what it was anyways, advising Neo to focus solely on pugilist training to acquire a good pugilist class job as his second one.

As a result, Neo wasn't as skilled with his fists as the others, though he'd never admit it to them.

As expected, even in the early morning, half the village had gathered at the village square—mostly men, but quite a few women who were interested in fights and, of course, kids like them. Why wouldn't they? This was one of the most exciting thing to happen since Goben fell from a tree and hurt his hand. And this was no ordinary fight—it was between two second-rankers.

Neo had only heard stories about how powerful they were, and now, he was finally going to witness it. He was sad, though, knowing the fight wouldn't end without one of them dying. Most likely, it would be Kazak since everyone knew the chief was the strongest in the village. It was stupid of Kazak to challenge him.

Neo hoped Kazak wouldn't die, but that was how leadership challenges worked—there could be no mercy for those who opposed the words of the chief.

Taub was already perched on top of Ninshia's hut roof, frantically waving at them he was saving a spot for them. From up there, they'd have a perfect view of the fight. Neo was relieved to see that it hadn't started yet. They climbed up one by one, taking their places besides Taub.

On the chief's side, his friends and followers were laughing and chatting, while Kazak stood alone, accompanied only by his friend, the old man Shin. They often spent time together, doing random things that barely anyone could understand. Surprisingly, Kazak seemed the calmest in the entire village square, giving Neo a flicker of hope, even though he knew it wouldn't last for long.

And then, it began. The fight was unlike anything Neo had ever seen. The massive chief, a towering brown furred bear, moved faster than Neo's eyes could follow, a blur swinging his enormous fist at Kazak. But instead of being crushed as everyone expected, Kazak just calmly stopped the grizzly fist with the back of his white-furred hand, with barely any effort.

That can't be...

When did Kazak become so powerful? Neo thought, stunned. No one had seen Kazak fight since he helped clear the valley of monsters as a first-ranker way back, he had heard that from the villagers. Back then, even though Kazak was young, he had been considered skilled.

The village, however, always said his abilities were not that good, saying he would have taken the chief's place long ago if he were truly strong. But Neo had always suspected that the last descendant of the ancient four great beast tribe was not to be underestimated.

Kazak calmly raised his fist and punched the chief in the stomach with seemingly simple actions that even a child could follow yet the chief could not stop it, sending him flying a considerable distance away. The chief barely managed to punch the ground and crack the earth to regain his balance.

"You've improved..." the brown-furred leader growled.

"It happens when you spend more time training than gossiping behind people's backs. You should try it sometimes.." Kazak shot back.

"Don't get cocky now. I was just testing to see if your thin bones would break under my fist's might. Since you can take it, I'll finally get a chance to release my pent-up frustration..."

True to his word, the chief released his aura, making it difficult for Neo to even keep his eyes open. A red glow enveloped the chief's entire body as he raised both his fists in front of him, taking the form of the "Calling the Beast". He unleashed his famous Bear Paw, said to summon the spirits of his Earthbreaker ancestors.

Neo now understood why—the aura manifested into a massive red bear that roared and charged at Kazak, shaking the ground with its monstrous weight.

That's it... Kazak can't escape this, Neo thought, expecting him to dodge or flee. But Kazak stood firm, staring down the oncoming beast.

"Your past makes you a worthy warrior, Zalar, but that's where you're stuck. You're a good friend, a decent warrior, and a just leader. But for war, one needs cruelty and decisiveness, which you lack. Your choices left me no other path. Farewell, brother. I'll forever remember you as the man I once fought alongside with."

Though Kazak's voice wasn't loud, it echoed throughout the village square. Even with the ferocious attack coming his way, he spoke calmly, as if the fight was already over.

Even Neo, who had been rooting for Kazak from the start, thought he was being just too arrogant. But then, the reason for Kazak's confidence became clear. Kazak, too, took on the form of the "Calling the Beast" stretching his white furred hands forward and unleashed a massive wave of white aura.

A colossal white tiger, four times the size of the red bear, materialized, its bone-chilling blue eyes looked menacing, its monstrous roar making the rooftop tremble like twigs. The entire village gasped in unison. There was supposed to be only one person capable of using the "Calling the Beast", now there was another.

And not just any ordinary user—Kazak's tiger dwarfed the red bear, towering over the whole village square.

The villagers watched in awe as the massive white tiger, with a single step, devoured both the red bear and the once proud chief with shocked expression, standing lifeless behind it.